Raphael Kessler

Brazil is another country that conjures images, whether it be of the Amazon or the Samba and Carnaval. Rio de Janeiro was my first stop and the harbour is regarded as a natural wonder of the world (photo 1), part of this view is Sugar Loaf mountain. This is best viewed from the Corcovado a massive art deco statue of Jesus atop a peak (photo 2).

Shortly after I arrived it was Carnaval time in Brazil, this started the earliest in Olinda, a picturesque little town some way north. From there I went to Salvador de Bahia, the former capital and home to the worlds largest carnival. Bahia is a very African province and as such is home to a different type of music to other parts of the country. Much of it involves larger drum sections (baterias), and it is all much more of a street party than the more famous Carnaval in Rio.  The area is also home to Capoeira a martial art disguised as a dance that originates with the black slaves. It is performed in order that the overseers could not see that the participants are actually training in self defence (photo 1) and is accompanied by musicians.

Salvador is famous for it's laid back mentality, the clocks in the bus station are intentionally set too fast, in order that the people might actually be on time. It is said that the only thing in Salvador that is early is Carnaval which starts a few days earlier than in Rio. There are different bits of Carnaval all over the town. In the Pelorinho (the old town), there is a relaxed street party with smallish blocos (samba groups) walking circuits through the streets (photos 2-8). As the carnival progresses the starting time gets earlier so that by Saturday it is starting at midday and ending about 6a.m. There were several international participants, the most notable being a Danish samba school (photo 4) who improved over the days they performed, by the end they were as good as any of the other blocos. In other parts of town such as Baha and Campo Grande the street party is on a much grander scale with hundreds of thousands on the streets and the bands riding atop huge trucks fitted with massive sound systems, bars and rest areas (photo 9). These are surrounded by the bloco who all wear the uniform of the group and are surrounded by Cordeiros who have a rope around the group to keep the rest of the crowd out. Some of these are followed by cleaner crews (photo 10) sweeping up the rubbish left by the group and having a dance as well. It was in Salvador that I was fortunate to see the legendary Cornelius Brown and the Samba maestro Joe Pandeiro (photo 11), a living legend and a really nice bloke (he tried to teach me the Pandeiro style and also gave me some maracas as a souvenir). It is also a good place to party and meet people (photo 12) but some people ended up partying a bit too hard (photo 13).

My friend Micha (who had come out for a few days from Holland) and I headed down to Rio again to see the parade of the samba schools at the Sambodromo. It was quite interesting to see the place, when we had to collect our tickets earlier in the day, whilst it was being prepared (photo 1). The samba schools that perform at this event spend millions on their floats and costumes and are heavily sponsored, as well as the participants usually having to pay considerable sums for the privilege. It was amusing to see the participants making their way to the Sambodromo in full regalia, making an interesting diversion on the metro (photo 3). The schools we saw were all extremely good, some being more fun than others, but all were impressive (photos 4-13). By the time we left it was daytime again and we were satisfied with the spectacular, but both agreed it was something we would not rush to see again. These shots are not fantastic as they were taken with a disposable camera.

Brasilia the capital is an interesting city, having been designed and built from scratch. Most of the buildings were designed by world famous architect Oscar Niemayer. The photos below show the Brasilia Cathedral, the Palace Guard and the National Congress.

The Amazon rainforest is a fascinating environment where one can see interesting and unique species of flora and fauna. The lilies in photo 1 can be up to two metres in diametre and have lovely flowers. There are areas where the trees are partially submerged as the water level rises (photo 2). It is home to worlds only fresh water porpoise, they are either grey or pink and can be seen and heard porpoising in the early morning and late afternoon (photo 3). The caymans are crocodilians that come in two species one of which can grow up to five metres in length (photos 4 & 5). You must be careful where you put your hands and feet when walking through the forest as there are snakes and spiders that will give you quite a bite. The most famous of these must be the tarantula (photo 6) venomous enough to kill a small child. The most famous fish of the Amazon are piranhas which come in several species from very small to quite large, but all of them have nasty razor sharp teeth, which makes fishing for them more difficult as you must put copper wire along the line to stop them biting through it (photo 7). I also saw and heard different monkeys whilst in the forest. One night I stayed with a Caboca family in the forest (photos 8 & 9). These are people of mixed blood, a combination of indigenous and immigrant, most of them make a living from agriculture and fishing. One of the more peculiar sights off the region though is the internationally reputed opera house in Manaus, the capital of the region. The opera house has a dome that was actually originally part of an Ottoman mosque but was purchased as it was in the Brazilian colours, making a grand if unusual arts venue, in the middle of the forest.

The Iguacu falls in the southwest corner of the country are along the border with Argentina and are some of the most spectacular cataracts in the world. Spread out and still mostly shrouded by the forest they are truly spectacular and have dramatic views at almost every turn (photos 1 - 5). Some may recognise it as it was where the part of the film "The Mission" was set. It is also the home for many interesting animals including the Coati (photos 6 & 7), Iguanas (photo 8) and spiders the size of a mans hand (photo 5). There are also pictures of Iguacu from the Argentinean side click on the link at the top on the left.

The following pictures are from when we visited the Brazilian side of Iguacu during our extended honeymoon. The only part of Brazil we visited on that trip was Iguacu. There we enjoyed the views of the waterfalls.

After visiting the falls, we went to a bird park over the road.

These pictures are from a previous visit I made.

Just up the road from Iguacu is the Itaipu dam, the worlds biggest dam, a joint project between the Brazilian and Paraguayan governments.